Land Before Time: The Curse
by Falcon88
Summary: When a young longneck arrives with a herd of far walkers, nobody knows much about her as she keeps to herself. However, a series of dangerous disasters and near catastrophes leads the grown-ups to believe she is the cause. Now Littlefoot and his friends must find a way to cure her of the curse before the grown-ups banish her.
1. Stranger Form A Far Land

A/N: Hello everyone! It's been ages since I've done an LBT story and most of you probably have no idea who I am. I had two LBT stories ages ago; one was completed, but the other one is on extended hiatus due to lack of popularity. I'm here now to bring you all a story that was requested (my first request!) by a friend and fellow author, Godzilla 2004. The story, plot and main OC character are all hers, so if you like the story, be sure to thank her.  
This story is a mystery/adventure/friendship. Hope everyone enjoys!

Disclaimer: Neither I nor Godzilla 2004 own any of the canon characters. Godzilla 2004 owns the story, plot and main OC.

Land Before Time: The Curse

Chapter 1: Stranger From A Far Land

Millions of years ago the world was a much different place that it is today. It was a world free of wars and pollution. A world of beauty and danger. A world filled with wonder and mysteries beyond our wildest dreams. It is in this world that we find the Great Valley, a happy and peaceful home to multiple species of dinosaurs. And it is here in the Great Valley that Littlefoot and his friends often start their adventures. Including this latest one.

Somewhere in the Mysterious Beyond stood a lone secluded valley that was radically set apart from the surrounding land. The Great Valley, as this land was known, was filled with trees of the most pristine leaves and streams of the cleanest sparkling water and lush fields of perfect green grass. A good sized fruit flew through the air in on such field where ten kids were playing.

"Ooh! Me got it!" Cried Petrie, flying up in front of the fruit. It struck him and continued on its path with the small flyer stuck to it. However, Petrie's weight and body changed the fruit's aerodynamics, causing it to sail past the 'goal post' of two trees, missing completely. The fruit hit the ground rolling and Petrie flew up, dazed, but none the worse for wear. Petrie's teammates, Littlefoot, Spike, Hyp and Mutt cheered the save.

"Yep. He got it." Said Hyp, going over to the fruit. "Our ball."

"Actually, he's your player so it's _our_ ball." Said Cera as she walked over.

"What?! But he blocked it!" Hyp protested.

"But it went out of bounds when he did so." Cera countered.

"Cera's right, Hyp." Said Littlefoot, getting between the two before a fight broke out. "It's their ball."

"Hmph!" Said Cera sticking her tongue out at Hyp. She picked up the fruit in her mouth, raised her nose in the air, and proudly strutted off.

"Errh." Hyp groaned in annoyance and muttered, "Sore winner…" before walking away back to the field. Cera arrived at her side of the field and met with her teammates, Ducky, Chomper, Ruby and Nod.

"Alright." Said Cera to her teammates. "We're going with _the play_."

"Ooh! This is going to be good!" Said Ruby.

"I think we can actually win this!" Said Chomper.

"Oh yes, yes, yes! We can!" Ducky agreed.

"Agreed!" Said Nod. Cera put down the fruit and her teammates took their positions.

"Ready?" The threehorn asked. Her team nodded. "On three." She lowered her head, charged and punted the fruit. "Three!" Cera passed the fruit to Ducky, who while too small to grab the fruit, was able to redirect it to Ruby, who quickly picked up the fruit and ran with it.

"Pass it to me!" Said Chomper, hopping in place. Ruby threw the fruit, but a certain spiketail appeared in front of Chomper. The fruit went flying in Spike's direction, who happily opened his mouth wide.

"**Spike, don't eat it!**" The other nine kids yelled.

"Eeehh!" Spike replied in the affirmative. Instead of catching the fruit in his mouth, he head-butted it. Unfortunately, this just smashed the fruit rather than send it flying.

"Well _that_ happened." Said Cera.

"Me get another one!" Petrie volunteered.

"Petrie!" Came Mama Flyer's voice.

"Oh! Me have to go! Sorry guys!" Said Petrie, turning towards his nest.

"Ducky! Spike!"

"We have to go to Spike." Said Ducky. "Goodbye everyone."

"Well, we can still play three on three and somebody referees."

"Cera!"

"Urrgh." Cera groaned in annoyance before turning to head to her father's voice. "See you guys."

"Littlefoot!" Came Grandpa Longneck's voice.

"I guess we'll play later." Said Littlefoot running off too.

"Well, we can still play with you hatchlings." Hyp said to the four remaining dinosaurs.

"What?! Coming dad!" Nod suddenly shouted before running off.

"What? You're dad's not calling!" Said Hyp.

"Yeah! Coming Nod's dad!" Yelled Mutt as he too ran off. Chomper and Ruby exchanged a glance before laughing nervously to Hyp and running off as well.

"Hrrn…" Hyp groaned in annoyance.

"Hey Grandma! Grandpa!" Littlefoot called as he reached his grandparents.

"Hello there, Littlefoot." Greeted his grandparents.

"Is something happening?" Littlefoot asked curiously.

"Yes, a herd of far walkers are arriving today." Grandma Longneck replied.

"We're going to go meet them later in the day, then all the valley dinosaurs will gather to grret them properly.

"Okay, cool!" Said Littlefoot. "Can I watch?"

"Yes you can. But first," Said Grandma Longneck. She picked Littlefoot up and placed him under a waterfall, "your bath." Once Littlefoot had finished and was clean, he went off to see what he could watch. Deciding to go watch the newcomers arriving, Littlefoot had run up a ridge overlooking one of the entrances to the Great Valley and was now watching as a herd of some thirty or so longnecks entered the valley.

"Hey! Far walkers!" Littlefoot said to himself. He wondered if there were any kids like him among them. As Littlefoot watched the herd of arriving longnecks, he noticed one, just one, that was a youth like he. The young longneck seemed to hang back from the others, walking at a slower pace and letting the grown-ups pass. From what Littlefoot could tell, it didn't look like this longneck was with any of the grown-ups, which barely acknowledged its presence. "That one who looks to be around my age!" He noted happily. With that, he made his way down the hill, hoping to greet the newcomer.

It took a while but Littlefoot finally spotted the young longneck. It was around his size and was looking down as it walked, its neck and head low. As Littlefoot studied the youngster before him, he realized something: it was a girl! As he got closer, Littlefoot was able to make out more of her appearance. She was of a similar color to Littlefoot, only of a darker shade, and she had red-brown eyes. Her eyes were sad and she kept them fixed to the ground as she walked.  
"Hi! What's your name?" Littlefoot asked curiously as he approached. "I'm Littlefoot." The longneck didn't reply, only continuing to stare at him fearfully. "Can't you talk?" Still no response. "Are you able to talk or do you just choose not to?" And nothing yet. She wasn't even moving and her total lack of reaction was greatly confusing Littlefoot. "I'm getting nowhere fast, am I?" Littlefoot asked more to himself. "Can you at least nod or shake your head or something?" The young longneck finally replied, not verbally of course, but with a small, almost imperceptible nod of her head. "Great!" Littlefoot practically cheered, startling the newcomer a bit. "Are you here with your parents?" She shook her head in the negative. "Any relatives, family, of any sort?" Again, she gave him the same response. "So you're here by yourself?" This time, the new longneck nodded.  
"I'm going to meet my friends. You can come along if you'd like." Littlefoot offered. He walked off to the edge of some trees, but the female longneck didn't budge. Littlefoot paused and turned around. "Well you coming?" The female longneck didn't reply, but as Littlefoot turned and continued on, this time she followed.

As Littlefoot walked, he could feel the female longneck's eyes boring into the back of his head and he had to admit, it was a little disconcerting. He stopped and turned around and as he did so, he saw she had also stopped and was staring off into the distance to one side as if pretending she hadn't been following him. Littlefoot's facial muscles contorted a bit and lifted on one side above his eye, the dinosaur equivalent of a raised eyebrow, but he said nothing and turned back, continuing on. Somewhere in the distance, thunder rumbled across the sky causing the female longneck to gasp.  
"It looks like sky water is going to fall soon." Littlefoot noted as he stared up at the sky, glancing towards his companion, he noticed her discomfort. "Are you afraid of sky water?" He asked curiously. The longneck shook her head. It wasn't sky water that frightened her, but rather the sky rumbles and sky fire. "Don't worry. You're safe here in the Great Valley. Just wait till you meet my friends. You'll love them! They're the nicest around! Well, Cera and Hyp are a little rough around the edges, but you get used to them."

As they approached a clearing, both longnecks could here the chatter of the other kids. They'd apparently been told about the newcomers from their families and had gathered to await whatever news Littlefoot brought them. Littlefoot moved on ahead towards his friends, but the female longneck abruptly stopped in her tracks, gazing out into the field at the other dinosaurs.  
From what she could see, Littlefoot's friends were a yellow threehorn, a green spiketail, a light green swimmer, a brown flyer, a gray big-jaw, a gray hardback and a pale gray-green largemouth. There was al a bipedal pink dinosaur she couldn't make out because Littlefoot was in the way, and she could also see a purple tail, but not who it belonged to as the owner was near the pink dinosaur, albeit shorter than the pink one, and Littlefoot also blocked her view of it. As she watched the group of friends, it very slowly dawned on her a fact that she already knew: these were real, living breathing strangers that she was expected to meet. A sudden wave of panic washed over her with dizzying abruptness that left her feelings more than a little nauseous.

"Hey guys! I want to introduce you to someone new!" Said Littlefoot as he ran to his friends. "She's- well, I don't know her name yet."

"Littlefoot, what are you talking about?" Asked Cera.

"The new longneck that's around our age!" Littlefoot replied.

"Uh, what new longneck?" Asked Mutt.

"Yeah, what is he talking about?" Asked Nod.

"Her! The longneck right behind me!" Littlefoot indicated behind him with his tail, yet didn't turn around himself. Everyone peeked around him, trying to see what he was indicating.

"Umm…" Said Petrie.

"Yeah…" Said Hyp.

"I don't see anyone." Added Ruby.

"Me neither." Agreed Chomper.

"She-!" Littlefoot finally turned around to see nothing behind him except a single tree.

"That's a tree." Said Cera matter-of-factly. Littlefoot turned to her giving a sarcastic 'seriously?' look.

"She's gone!"

"Don't worry Littlefoot." Said Ducky. "We still love you even if you are crazy."

"Guys! I didn't just make her up!" Littlefoot insisted. "She must have wandered off! We have to find her before she gets lost!"

The young female longneck ran as fast as her legs could carry her. Part of her felt immensely guilty about fleeing, but another part knew she couldn't help it. That biting, almost crippling fear that reached into the very core of her being had reared its ugly head, the terror of it overwhelming her, smothering her, until he felt all that she could do was flee. And so she ran. And she kept on running even as sky water began to fall.  
So intent and focused was she on fleeing that she didn't see a large gray tree trunk in front of her until she collided with it. The impact threw he back and she unceremoniously fell to the ground. It took her a moment to get her bearings and in that time she realized two things. The first was that the tree trunk that she hit was rather soft for a tree trunk. The second was that tree trunks were _not_ gray. And that's when the 'tree trunk' moved. A long neck descend before her and a kindly old face came into view.

"Are you okay little one?" Asked the kindly voice of none other than Littlefoot's grandfather. The younger longneck could only nod in quiet, open-mouthed astonishment. This old longneck, despite his age, was far bigger than the ones she'd ever seen. In the Mysterious Beyond, due to constant dangers, stress and lack of food, longneck's rarely achieved their full sizes; she'd never seen any herself. And his skin color was very bright and healthy, again despite his age. Soon they were joined by another longneck, a female, who was just as big as the male.

"What's your name young one?" Asked Grandma Longneck. The young longneck said something, but her voice was so low and hushed, neither grown-ups were able to make out what she said.

"I'm sorry dear, I'm afraid I didn't quite catch that." Said Grandpa Longneck.

"Our hearing isn't as good as it used to be." Grandma Longneck joked good humoredly.

"Grandma! Grandpa! I-!" Littlefoot ran to his grandparents and stopped upon seeing who was with them. "There you are! Are you okay?"

"You know her little one?" Asked Grandma.

"Yes… well, sorta." Littlefoot admitted. "I just met her a little while back. I was taking her to meet my friends when she disappeared. I was coming to you to ask if you could help me find her. I didn't even get her name yet."  
Again the female longneck murmured something and again they missed it, but it did sound like it with a 'mee' sound.

"I'm sorry, one more time." Said Littlefoot.

"It's Mikasa." They young longneck whispered, but this time it was audible. "My name… it's Mikasa."

"What a unique name. Doesn't sound like it's from anywhere around here." Said Grandma Longneck

"I… I come from very far." Mikasa said, still in a very low voice.

* * *

A/N2: Well, that's it for the first chapter. I remember that when I wrote my own LBT fics, many people expressed doubt in my ability to write a "normal" LBT story, so I really hope I was able to do this and Godzilla 2004's vision justice, and I really hope I was able to capture the LBT 'feel' and keep it. Please review, and once again, thank Godzilla 2004 for her idea.


	2. Strange Meeting

A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the massive delay. I had finals in school, went on a cruise vacation, and Disney (quite a few times now) including taking part in the 24 Hour Kickoff Event to the Coolest Summer Ever (that's the name of the event). I also rewrote this chapter a ton of times. I had to move around a lot of stuff to other chapters and reorganize lots stuff. Unlike my other LBT stories that are made in the style of TV series (huge, multiple plots that tie back at the end), this one is a lot more concentrated and that's actually **harder** for me to write, heh. As a bit of a heads up, it's a bit dark at the end. Since It was just spoken and not shown, and I tried to be broad, I don't think it crosses into a T-rating. Still, it's pretty difficult to stay perfectly alert so that I don't accidentally slip into T territory. However, since FFN is paranoid with ratings, I'll just say that reader's discretion is recommended

Disclaimer: Neither I nor Godzilla 2004 own any of the canon characters. Godzilla 2004 owns the story, plot and main OC.

Land Before Time: The Curse

Chapter 2: Strange Meeting

Littlefoot and his grandparents listened silently and intently as Mikasa told of her journey and a bit about her life. Littlefoot noticed conspicuously missing was any mention of family and friends. Form what he could tell, she really _was_ here all by herself. He wanted to ask her, but as if sensing his question, Grandma Longneck shook her head and Littlefoot remained silent. Like Littlefoot, Grandma also noticed her lack of mention of family or friends and she could sense something was off, but decided it'd be wrong to push Mikasa so soon after just meeting her. It took a few minutes for Mikasa to finish.

"Littlefoot, have you taken Mikasa to meet your friends yet?" Asked Grandpa Longneck when the young longneck had finished speaking.

"Well, I tried to but… well, she ran away."

"Well, I…" Mikasa trailed off, so Littlefoot stepped in.

"I'll introduce you to my friends. Just… don't run away again, okay?" Mikasa looked up at Littlefoot's Grandparents and they nodded.

"Okay." As the kids went off, Grandpa Longneck noticed a look of concern on his mate's face.

"Is everything alright dear?" He asked.

"I think that girl is hiding something painful. I just hope she will be alright."

"So you're really here all alone?" Littlefoot asked as they walked side-by-side.

"Yes." Mikasa replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"But… why?" Mikasa shrugged.

"I don't like being around people."

"Why?" Littlefoot pressed.

"I don't know." She said, a slight edge in her voice. " I don't like being around others. I like to be by myself."

"But don't you want any friends?"

"No, not really. Never needed them."

"Uhm, why?"

"Because in the Mysterious Beyond, no one ever lasts long." She said cryptically causing Littlefoot to halt in his steps. He racked his mind for something and an idea came to him.

"No one has to be alone in this world we live in," Littlefoot began to sing. "You don't need to feel there's no one by your side-"

"Wait, are you singing?" Mikasa interrupted, disbelief in her voice, regarding Littlefoot as if he had just grown a second head.

"Well… yeah." Littlefoot replied, unsure what she was getting at.

"What, do you just randomly start singing on a whim whenever you feel like it?"

"No! Well, er kind- uh, yes." Said Littlefoot.

"Okay…" Said Mikasa, taking a few sidesteps away from Littlefoot. Littlefoot just groaned and rolled his eyes.

Somewhere off in a green field, all of Littlefoot's friends, minus Chomper, had gathered to discuss their complete lack of success in location Littlefoot's mysterious new longneck friend.

"I told you this was a wild egg chase." Said Cera.

"But Littlefoot saw her. He did, he did." Said Ducky.

"That's right, he saw her." Said Petrie. Cera shook her head.

"He _thinks_ he saw another longneck. Remember he was referring to a tree? I think Littlefoot's losing mind.

"Oh my! That's bad!" Said Ruby.

"Are you sure? This doesn't seem right." Said Hyp.

"If Littlefoot losing his mind, we should help him find it!" Said Petrie.

"Hey guys!" Came Littlefoot's voice from nearby.

"Quick! Act natural!" Cera said in a hushed voice.

"Guys! I'd like to introduce you all to someone." He said walking up with Mikasa beside him. "This is Mikasa. She lived her whole life in the Mysterious Beyond!" Aside to Cera, he added, "I told you there was another longneck." Everyone except Littlefoot and Mikasa glared at Cera, who only smiled guiltily.

"Hi Mikasa! Me Petrie, a brave flyer!" Said Petrie, flying up to her. She stepped back cautiously, but fought the urge to run."

"I'm Ducky and this is my big brother, Spike." Ducky went next. "He doesn't talk much, nope, nope, nope."

"Ehh!" Spike agreed. He licked Mikasa's face and she cringed. Littlefoot was genuinely surprised she didn't bolt, given her tendency to flee close proximity and contact with others.

Hi Mika! I'm Ruby." Ruby said with a friendly wave. "I also lived my whole life in the Mysterious Beyond." A shadow of a smile crossed Mikasa's face and Littlefoot could have sworn he saw a tiny glimmer of hope in her eyes. Mutual experiences could lead to friendship perhaps.

"I'm Nod and this here is Mutt!" Said Nod.

"Hi!" Said Mutt.

"I'm Cera! A proud and strong threehorn! Grr!" Cera introduced herself, scaring Mikasa a bit and causing Littlefoot and Ducky to shake their head at the threehorn.

"And I'm Hyp!" Hyp said pointing to himself. "The biggest, baddest, coolest dinosaur in all the Great Valley."

"And he and Cera are also secretly competing over who has the least humility." Littlefoot whispered aside to Mikasa, causing her to give a small, quiet giggle.

"These are my friends."

"Do they randomly break out into song as well?"

"Hmm?" All of Littlefoot's friends regarded him curiously. Littlefoot in turn lowered his head and smacked his face with a paw, letting it drag down his snout.

"Hey, um-" Littlefoot looked around, trying to think up a different topic. "Where's Chomper."

"He's still out searching." Said Ruby.

"Then we better go find him or he'll be out there all day." Said Littlefoot.

Chomper was still out searching for Littlefoot's missing friend. He was in tall grass and thus had missed when Cera called the others back to give up. As he searched however, he heard his friends' voices calling his name this time. Guessing they must have either found whoever they were looking for or given up, he decided to go to them. Chomper came out of the grass and noticed a new, young longneck off to one side with its back to him. Wondering if this was whom he'd been searching for, he decided to go up and introduce himself. After all, a friend of Littlefoot's would have certainly been warned about what species he was, no?

"Hi! I'm Chomper." The young longneck turned to him and her eyes went completely wide.

"Sharptooth!" Mikasa shrieked, diving behind some nearby bushes.

"Where?!" Cried Chomper, looking around in panic. He ran and dove behind the same bushes. Their actions caught the attention of the others who could only watch in utter surprise.

"Aaaahh!"

"Aaaahh!" The others watched in shock as Mikasa blasted from the bushes, tripped on a rut and flipped over, falling on her back. Chomper ran out, tripped on the same rut Mikasa had and went flying. From her upside down vantage point, Mikasa saw the young sharptooth flying at her and squeezed her eyes shut. Chomper landed on his stomach just in front to Mikasa and, tucking his head and neck in a bit, was able to cover his eyes with his claws.

"Uhh…guys?" Said Littlefoot.

"What just happened?" Asked Petrie. The others shrugged.

"They scared each other!" Said Hyp in surprise. "Ha! That was funny!"

"Mikasa, it's okay." Said Littlefoot. "Chomper's a friendly sharptooth."

"**Friendly?! Sharpteeth are _not_ 'friendly'!**" Mikasa practically screamed.

"Chomper?" Ruby asked, helping him up.

"She scared me." Said Chomper.

"See Mikasa, you scared him too." Said Cera.

"**_I_ scared him?!**" She shrieked in near hysterics, causing the others to flinch. Even Chomper seemed startled and backed up a little at her outburst. "I- I'm sorry… I have- I have to go." She said, turning and fleeing.

"Mikasa wait!" Littlefoot called, but she was gone.

"She's a bit rude, isn't she?" Asked a certain yellow threehorn.

"Cera!"

Mikasa ran blindly, her feet moving fast then her fear muddled brain could keep up. She didn't stop until she collided with something hard. Hard and scaly.

"I-I'm sorry… I- I- I didn't see where-" She stumbled to apologize to whoever she had run into. To her surprise, Grandma Longneck's face lowered into her field of view.

"It's okay little one, there's no need to apologize." Grandma said soothingly. "Is everything alright?"

"I'm… yeah, I'm fine."

"Oh? Then may I ask why you were running?"

"I- I was scared."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"Littlefoot was introducing me to his friends and… well, the sharptooth scared me."

"Oh. Yes, that has happened before." Grandma admitted. "But I can assure you, he _is_ friendly."

"I… I don't want to go back."

"Why, little one? No one will harm you."

"I know!" Mikasa exasperated. "But I… I don't do well with- with others." She took a deep breath and sighed. "I don't want friends or anyone. I'm trouble. I only cause pain and sorrow."

"That's not true." Grandma countered.

"Yes it is!" Mikasa said, almost in tears. "I-! They-! It's just not worth it…" She finished in a weak whisper. Grandma had suspicions, but now she was sure she was dealing with someone who'd been traumatized by something. "It's not fair." Mikasa whispered, mostly to herself as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"I know the pain of losing someone." Mikasa's eyes snapped open and she looked up at Grandma Longneck.

"You- you do?" Grandma nodded.

"A few years ago, I lost my only daughter."

"Does… does the pain ever go away?" Mikasa asked, barely above a whisper.

"No, deary." Grandma replied sincerely and Mikasa hung her head sadly. "But, it does get better. In time."

"Oh."

"Now, would you like to tell me about it? It may make the pain easier to bear if it's not your secret alone."

"Promise you won't tell anyone?"

"I promise."

"Not even Littlefoot?" Grandma hesitated for a moment, shocked, but then nodded.

"This will be between us."

"I- I saw them all die. My parents; my- my siblings." Mikasa started, staring at the ground. "T-the sharpteeth came and I fled. I… hid in a cave and just watched! I- I watched them die! It's all my fault! I didn't help them! I just stood there uselessly!"

"Oh no, dear, no. It's not your fault." Grandma soothed. "There was nothing you could do."

"All the screaming and the roaring and the blood…" Said Mikasa emptily, then choked back a sob. "So much blood! And… and then… it was silent. All so silent, the loudest silent I ever heard."

"I'm so, so sorry dear." Said Grandma. "I promise I will not tell anyone, but you should."

"Why?"

"You went through a lot. Friends can help you get through that." Grandma replied. "They may not look like it, but they all went through great trauma themselves, yet they made it with each other's help. And their bond is strong. This doesn't have to be your burden alone. Friends can help you share the pain and they can help you heal"

"Maybe I'll tell… someday."

"When you're ready." Agreed Grandma.

* * *

A/N2: I lost track of how many times I rewrote the ending to this chapter. It was difficult! I've rewritten actions scenes several times, but just dialogue, never this much! Hope everyone enjoyed.

**Godzilla2004:** I finally did it! Took me longer than I hoped for, but here it is!

**Update(Guest):** Done!


	3. Strange Happenings

A/N: I know folks, I know. Another humongous delay. It's a long story, so if you want to know what happened, read my author's note on chapter 18 of my story Through The Storm. While trying to get all my stories updated before I travel to Europe for the rest of the year today, I came to two realizations. First, I must admit that I realized that I _would _be able to update my stories; however, I must be equally honest about the second realization which was that, while yes, I could finish the chapters, they would suffer tremendously in quality. This chapter I was able to break into two parts (this and the next), something I couldn't do for my other stories, so this one is short, but I got it updated.  
Happy Holidays to everyone!

Disclaimer: Neither I nor Godzilla 2004 own any of the canon characters. Godzilla 2004 owns the story, plot and main OC.

Land Before Time: The Curse

Chapter 3: Strange Happenings

Littlefoot went down to the river from the Thundering Falls early the next morning. His was deep in thoughts, wondering if he'd ever get through to Mikasa. He wanted to consider her a friend – he liked making friends after all – but he wasn't too sure she really wanted friends. Hearing the sound of softly running water brought him out of his thoughts and he licked his dry mouth, realizing just how thirsty he was.  
Littlefoot stopped with his face about a foot from the water. Something smelt… off. And the color was ever so slightly darker than normal. Littlefoot shrugged and went to take a huge gulp of water.  
"Hey Littlefoot!" He stopped before he could lap up even a single drop and turned to see,  
"Mikasa?"  
"I uh, I wanted to apologize for running off yesterday." She said, timidly as ever. Littlefoot opened his mouth then shut it, unsure of what he could say that might not cause her discomfort.  
"Well, I… uh-" He never got to say anything.  
"Aaaaaaaaaah!" Someone screamed. Littlefoot whirled on the spot and saw a dinosaur collapsed near the river.  
"Wha-?" He began.  
"Poison!" Someone cried.  
"It's poison!" Yelled another dinosaur. Several dinosaurs who had come down to the river were talking worriedly amongst themselves and beginning to panic.  
"Oh no!" Mikasa whispered. "Not again." Littlefoot was close enough to hear and turned to her.  
"Again?" He asked.

"What happened?" Topsy demanded. It was later that same morning and most of the Great Valley dinosaurs had convened for an emergency meeting.  
"How's the victim?" Asked Tria  
"He'll live." Answered Grandma Longneck. "He was big enough and healthy enough that the amount he drank wasn't enough to kill him. He is still deathly sick though."  
"I hate to think what would have happened if one of the kids drank the water first." Petrie's mom said nervously. Littlefoot swallowed hard.  
"How could something like this have happened?!" Asked Topsy. "Our water source, poisoned!"  
"We followed the river all the way back to the Mysterious Beyond." Said Ducky's mom. "We found a very large tree had fallen across the river, its branches in the water. The berries growing on the tree were poisonous."  
"So that's it." Said Grandpa Longneck. "An unfortunate coincidence but a simple act of nature."  
"Several of us got together and pulled the tree out. It's only a matter of waiting for all the remainder of the poison to be washed away." Said Ducky's mom.  
"And how long will that take?!" Asked Topsy.  
"Well, at the rate the river flows, I'd say a few more hours. Probably safe by the time the bright circle is at its highest in the sky." Answered Grandpa Longneck.

"Wow, that was freaky about that tree, huh?" Asked Hyp as the kids gathered later. They were all present save Mikasa who was nowhere to be seen. "I mean it's been there for who knows how long and then one day it just falls right down across the river that feeds the Great Valley."  
"Well, if it's been there so long, I guess it was bound to happen." Said Cera.  
"Yeah, but _right_ on the river?" Asked Hyp. Before anyone could say anything else, Ruby spoke up.  
"Hey look!" She said, pointing at the sky. "Flying rocks!"  
"Ooh! Pretty!" Said Petrie.  
"Yeah, it's strange that they're this visible in daytime." Noted Littlefoot.  
"Maybe they're closer to us." Said Mutt.  
"Nah!" Said Hyp. "These rocks are way far away."  
_Baft!_  
"Yipe!" Hyp yelled, instinctively drawing his right leg back and cringing as he eyed the smoldering rock that had just smacked into the ground beside him. "It's more like falling rocks!"  
"Ooooh…." The other kids said in awe.  
"That was close!" Said Nod.  
"Eehhm!" Hyp practically whimpered.  
"Hmm." Littlefoot said thoughtfully.  
"Littlefoot?" Asked Ruby.  
"First, the river is poisoned. One tree poisoned the whole river! Now, falling rocks this visible in the daytime and one just misses Hyp. Two unnatural incidents in one day. I… I fear we may be getting bad luck again."  
"AGAIN!?" Petrie gasped fearfully.  
"This isn't happening again! This can't be happening again! Tell me this isn't happening again!" Cried Cera getting right into Littlefoot's face, her eyes wild in desperation.  
"It's happening again."  
"**Why?!**"  
"I'm… I'm afraid it only going to get worse."  
"Huh?" As one, all the kids turned to see Mikasa standing several feet away, a look of fear on her face.  
"What do you mean?" Asked Littlefoot.  
"I… I've said to much!" And she bolted.  
"She's gone! Again!" Said Littlefoot.  
"Ugh! Somebody's gotta get a tracker for this kid!" Cried Cera. She turned to Chomper and asked, "Can you track her?" Chomper shook his head. "Perfect." Cera stated flatly.

* * *

**Godzilla2004:** Where? I'll have to look into it later. Hope you enjoy.

**Steve Wilson: **No, her name is just a reference to the character. I'm writing based on the information my requestee (requestor?) gave me for the story. As far as I know, there will be no further references.


End file.
